Posted by:
Anddawede
at Fri Oct 24 11:56:02 2003 [ Email Message ] [ Show All Posts by Anddawede ]
I'm not very experienced at all with Turtle tank set up but I'm impressed with what I managed to do. I put something on one side of the tank to lay a ledge that I picked up at the pet store. I originally tried to lean a ramp against the ledge but my turtle ignored it and preferred to climb the "plant" life that I put near the ledge. Plus, I observed that Turtles seem to want to lean against the sides of the tank on top of "plant" life and rocks so I've make sure my turtle at least has the 4 corners in which to rest. (I'm upgrading to a larger tank in about 2 months so I'm going to put in more traditional basking areas) I also purchased a filter for a tank twice the size of the actual tank at the advice of the person at the petstore. Its a canaster type that hangs on the side and the water comes out like a waterfall (my turtle likes to hang out under the waterfall sometimes). There are gravel rocks in my tank (about the side of my turtles head so he can't eat them), plus a few larger garden rocks placed strategically around "plant" life so it doesn't float away. Another observation (I tend to watch my turtle alot because he's fascinating) is that he likes to dig at the rocks and "plant" life.
I'm not sure if I'm doing the right thing, but I feed him in the tank usually about the same time each day, give or take an hour, a few pellets. I read somewhere that turtles are pigs in shells, so he only gets fed once a day. Plus I keep feeder fish (Rosy Reds) in his tank. I don't bother feeding the feeder fish because I noticed that they are scavengers and eat whatever the turtle doesn't eat. I figure, if he gets really hungry in between daily feedings, there are fish for him to catch.
The lighting I'm using is the ESU Reptile Slimline Light Strip which came with a UV lamp that claims to give off sufficient UVA & UVB rays. I'm trusting that the box is correct. Plus I have a desklamp over my basking area. It's pretty bright in there for my turtle because his tank is near a large window and he's getting natural light on top of the different lamps. All the lights go off a night though. I have too many cats to trust that they won't pounce the tank and knock something over.
I tend to get very excited when talking about my turtle, I think it's because it's so new for me to have a turtle. So I apologize if I tend to run on.
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RE: Some set up questions... - Anddawede, Fri Oct 24 11:56:02 2003